By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
On Wednesday, October 28, the top ten Republican candidates for President gathered on stage in the very purple state of Colorado. Members of the Alabama Constitutional Conservatives gathered at John’s Diner in downtown Birmingham for a debate watching party.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, Texas Senator Ted Cruz, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, New York City businessman Donald Trump, surgeon and author Dr. Ben Carson, former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, Ohio Governor John Kasich, and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee were on stage to make their case to the American people on why they should be the next President of the United States.
Meanwhile the Alabama conservatives ate, drank, joked, loudly criticized the CNBC moderators, and fellowshipped with friends. Republican Board of Education candidate Justin Barkley made an appearance as did Judge Dorothea Batiste (R).
Cindy Monaghan-Holcomb said on Twitter, “Watching the CNBC Republican Debate with my friends! My friends make watching a debate so much fun!!”
All the candidates drew criticism at times from the group; though the harshest criticism were for the questions being asked by the CNBC tag team of moderators.
Cindy Monaghan-Holcomb said, “I am so proud of the Republican candidates tonight! They all stood their ground, answered the questions honestly, even when not politically correct, and called out the liberal media for their blatant bias and attempt to pit the candidates against one another. What a contrast to the candidates the Republican establishment has offered in the past! How refreshing!”
Jamey Clements said, “Agreed. This was the most entertaining debate so far. It was great to see the other candidates finally loosen up. By doing so, Trump didn’t completely dominate like he did the previous two. I had a blast tonight.”
Deanna Frankowski shared New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s disdain for the question about whether fantasy football pools constituted illegal sports gaming or not.
Governor Christie said during the debate, “Fantasy football! We have ISIS and al Qaeda attacking us and we’re talking about fantasy football? How about we get the government to do what they’re supposed to be doing? Enough on fantasy football. Let people play.”
The crowd erupted in cheers when, Texas Senator Ted Cruz said, “The questions that have been asked so far in this debate illustrate why the American people don’t trust the media. This is not a cage match.”
The group was divided as to who won the debate. One said Donald Trump, another thought Mike Huckabee did, several thought it was Marco Rubio who did the best job.
